


Metamorphosis

by cfcureton



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), olicity - Fandom
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-19 17:28:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13128333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cfcureton/pseuds/cfcureton
Summary: My submission for Olicity Secret Santa 2017.The song that goes with this story is “Warm Foothills” by alt-J.





	Metamorphosis

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Bandanab310](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bandanab310/gifts).



April, 2019

Felicity let herself into their apartment with a sigh; this was not exactly a peaceful place to be at the moment. Oliver’s re-election campaign yard signs leaned in great stacks against every available wall. A couple of card tables with chairs were shoved in corners for volunteers to use in the evenings. Buttons, leaflets, and unopened boxes of pencils sporting “Re-elect Mayor Queen” along their sides were piled up everywhere. Why virtual elections weren’t a thing yet, she would never know. 

She kicked off her shoes into the mess—because who would notice?—and headed straight for the fridge. She’d had a weird metallic taste in her mouth all day, and she had missed lunch. 

Felicity stood staring into its stainless steel depths for several seconds before deciding on the orange juice, yanking it out of its spot in the door. She practically tossed it over her shoulder across the room; the carton was empty.

“William!” She used her loud voice, which didn’t happen often, but that OJ had really looked good. A non-communicative grunt was the only reply from the direction of his room.

“Could you come in here please?” Felicity was getting lightheaded from her skipped meal, which only added to her annoyance about the juice. She snagged a cheese stick from the fridge before closing the door, but couldn’t open the package because she suddenly had to lean one hand against the counter to fight a wave of dizziness. 

“William...” she started to repeat before she went down on her knees in a half faint.

“Felicity?!” William’s voice cracked in the way it sometimes did nowadays, and he hovered over her awkwardly. He was in a phase where he still wanted to be affectionate with his step mother, but at the same time avoided touching her like the plague. It was, in equal measures, endearing and embarrassing.

“Call your Dad,” she said, breathlessly, dropping her forehead to her lap. Before William could stride away for his phone she remembered the cheese stick in her fist and waved it over her head at him. “Can you open this first, please?”

He snatched it up and ripped it open, then laid it back into her shaking hand before galloping to his bedroom. 

She couldn’t make out the actual phone conversation, but William’s voice was higher pitched than usual; she’d scared him, poor thing, and probably overreacted herself. In less than a minute he was back in the room with her.

“Dad said I should get you a drink of water,” he told her, already pulling a cup down from the cupboard. Now that he had a physical direction to follow he seemed to be more calm. Oliver, of course, would’ve been very steady and reassuring on the phone, even if he was currently freaking out on the inside. “He’s on his way,” William added.

“Can you get me the crackers,” she asked faintly, having nibbled her way through most of the cheese.

“I think I ate them all,” he replied. 

Felicity blew out a slow breath before sipping water from the cup.

“There was a bagel left this morning,” she said then, not looking up. She missed William’s cringe of shame.

“I ate that while I was looking for the crackers.”

He sprang to the pantry and began rummaging for something she might like. 

“I found some pretzels!”

“That’ll work,” she confirmed, sitting up and taking a bigger drink of water. 

William handed the bag to her and then wiped his hands on his jeans. He looked spooked, like he didn’t know if he should stay or go.

Felicity crunched through a couple of pretzels, savoring the salty flavor on her tongue.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to stay with me. I’m feeling better.” She gave him a faint smile as she reached into the bag again. He hesitated, torn about what to do. Finally he came to a decision and dropped to the floor next to her, stretching his legs straight out in front of him, the pretzel bag between them. 

“You’re all legs anymore,” she observed weakly, mirroring his pose and waggling her feet slightly as she compared the length of his legs to hers. She took another handful of pretzels and nudged the bag toward him. He helped himself, but sparingly.

They were still sitting side by side, talking about his day at school, when Oliver came through the door, a small brown paper bag in his hand. William levered himself up off the floor to make room as Oliver came into the kitchen and crouched in front of his wife.

“Hey,” he said softly, a trace of a smile mixed with some concern on his face. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m fine. I forgot to eat lunch today, that’s all, and it caught up to me. Sorry to worry you.” She laid a hand on his arm and his smile grew. 

“What did you bring me,” she continued, eyeing the bag. Oliver unfolded the top and reached in. He pulled out a pint of mint chip.

“You thought I needed ice cream?”

“The ice cream is to soften the blow of the other thing I brought you,” he said quietly, a twinkle in his eye. He pushed the bag toward her and she shot him a look before peeking inside.

There were several beats of silence while she sat staring into the bag. William, leaning against the fridge, shifted his weight closer out of curiosity, but Oliver’s gaze never left his wife’s face.

Her eyes finally lifted to his, her lips pursed and her expression hovering between thoughtfulness and mild shock.

“Oliver, it’s a pregnancy test.”

“Yep.” He nodded slowly.

They had recently agreed that they weren’t trying to get pregnant, but they weren’t trying not to, either. 

Felicity’s eyes flicked to William and back, then she leaned closer to Oliver.

“We just went off birth control last month,” she hissed, and Oliver grinned at her and waggled his eyebrows. She smacked his arm.

“Don’t look so smug, Mr Queen.”

That was apparently the last straw for William; Felicity thought she heard him groan “Oh my God” under his breath as he took off for his room. Oliver’s grin got bigger. 

He stuck out a hand and she took it so he could pull her to her feet as he stood.

“Go take it. I’ll start dinner.”

A couple of hours later, test confirmed and celebratory dinner over, Felicity stuck her head into William’s room.

“Thanks for taking care of me earlier,” she said, and he looked up from his homework to shrug at her, his way of saying don’t mention it. “I hope we didn’t gross you out too much with all the baby-making talk,” she continued before she could help herself.

“Felicity, honey,” Oliver called sweetly from the living room, “don’t make it worse.”

“Right. Sorry! I’ll leave you to it. But I hope you’re excited about it. The baby, I mean. Because I am. Okay. Bye.” She gave a funny wave and a little curtsy as she backed away from his doorway. She almost missed his reply, it was so soft.

“I’m excited too.”

 

June, 2019

Felicity cupped a handful of water from under the running faucet and slurped it up before swishing and spitting.

“Gah. I’m getting sick and tired of being sick and tired.”

“So stay home today. Rest up.”

She shook her head quickly, then groaned as she made herself dizzy and her stomach flipped again.

“Can’t. William’s jeans look like Capri pants. He can’t go one more day in them.”

“Maybe I could do it,” Oliver offered. Felicity wiped her mouth and slid past him into the bedroom to find her shoes.

“Negative. That boy has looong legs, but the circumference of a fence post. It’s nearly impossible to find his size. It takes a lot of patience and sharp eyesight.” She adjusted her glasses with no irony whatsoever.

“I’m an archer, remember? I have good eyesight.”

“I know you do. It’s your patience I’m worried about.”

Oliver sighed in exasperation.

“Can’t you order them online?”

“Again, he needs them tomorrow. Besides, he’s totally picky about the style and the weight of the denim. I don’t trust what I can’t hold in my hand.” She reached out to rub his arm as she moved past him. “It’s fine, Oliver. A little exercise and fresh air are good for me, right?”

She paused at the front door, purse in her hands.

“One of these days he’s going to be full grown, and I won’t have an excuse to go shopping all the time.” She winked at him and Oliver couldn’t help smiling.

“You do love shopping.”

 

August, 2019

“Oh my GOD I hate shopping so much.”

Felicity plunked her forehead onto the bar counter dramatically, her ponytail flopping back and forth as she shook her head. Oliver, watching her from his spot at the kitchen sink, chuckled but didn’t answer. 

William poked his head out from his bedroom with a look of pure remorse on his face.

“I’m sorry, Felicity. I can’t seem to stop growing.”

“Oh!” Her head popped up off the counter, and she slid down from the barstool to come to William’s side, her eyes wide with concern. “I didn’t mean you, buddy. I meant me!” She rubbed a hand over her baby bump. “Suddenly nothing fits anymore.”

Felicity stood in thought for a second, her eyes on her belly. “Iris was able to go right up until she delivered wearing a pair of Barry’s jeans halfway unzipped,” she finished, bemused. 

“I have jeans...” Oliver began, but her huff of exasperation cut him off.

“Barry and Iris are practically the SAME SIZE. This”—she gestured wildly between them—“would not work.”

“Well I think you’re gorgeous, whatever you’re wearing,” Oliver said without hesitation, his eyes alight with love as he stared at her middle.

“Hey. My eyes are up here, big guy,” she quipped, but there was a smile on her face. 

William’s eyes suddenly went wide, and he disappeared back into his room for a second. He reappeared with a brochure in his hand.

“I almost forgot! I’m supposed to ask you if I can take this Safe Sitter course at the library. For, you know, when the baby comes.”

Felicity’s eyes lit up, and Oliver’s misted over.

“That’s a great idea, Will!” She looked over the material and then nudged him with an elbow. Her stepson blushed under the compliment.

“It was actually Aunt Thea’s idea.” He rubbed a hand across the back of his neck in a perfect, unconscious imitation of his father. “She’s going to take it too.”

This time it was Felicity who got choked up, and when William drifted back into his room—sensing an awkward moment of pregnancy tears—she practically launched herself across the room to bury her face in Oliver’s chest. 

“How is it that so many people love this baby already,” she asked in wonder, her voice muffled by his body. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head, not even trying to stop the happy tears. 

 

September, 2019

Felicity sighed in utter contentment, one hand rubbing her belly, the other raking through her husband’s hair. She was propped up in bed, and Oliver was scooched down so that he could rest his cheek on the swell below her breasts. Every once in awhile they would both feel a kick, and smile. 

“I measured William yesterday,” Oliver murmured. “He’s officially 5’8”. That’s four inches this year alone.” Felicity shook her head in wonder.

“Have you noticed his sort-of mustache,” she asked. Oliver nodded against her stomach, his eyes going wide. “When do you have the talk about shaving,” she continued. “I mean, how does all of that work?”

Felicity was continually surprised by the amount of maleness in the apartment all of a sudden. She hadn’t even lived with a father for most of her life, so being overrun by testosterone was an interesting phenomenon. 

“And don’t think I’m going to do it, either,” she warned. “I covered deodorant with him.”

Her comment was met with silence. 

“You’re also in charge of the sex talk,” she added, unnecessarily. Oliver was giving her puppy dog eyes, but he sighed in agreement.

“I know. I’ve been putting it off, because he hasn’t seemed to have the, um, interest in that sort of thing that I had at his age. But it’s probably past time.”

He’d been staring past her shoulder as he talked, the fingers of one hand tracing random patterns over her belly, but he glanced over at Felicity and huffed a laugh at the expression on her face. 

“What?”

“How old were you when you lost your virginity,” she asked, curiosity and a little heat in her eyes.

“Thirteen, or so.” He grinned, finding it harder to ignore his own stir of interest that she had triggered. 

“Well thank God for small favors,” she said then with a laugh. “I don’t think I could cope with a newborn and a horny teenager at the same time.”

The thought sent them both into an uncontrollable fit of giggles, and they laughed until Felicity had to shove his head off of her to rush to the bathroom before she wet the bed. 

He made it up to her when she got back. 

 

November, 2019

“I know you told me not to tell you, but you’re waddling,” Thea said cheekily, breaking off a piece of carrot in her back teeth while Felicity glared. 

“You’re officially banned from Thanksgiving. Go home.”

Thea grinned at her, jumping off her barstool to throw her arms around her sister in law’s neck and smooch her cheek. Felicity swatted her away good naturedly while Oliver smiled over his sweet potato casserole preparations.

“Who else is coming,” she asked, as William drifted into the room looking for food.

“Curtis, Dinah, and Rene and Zoe. The Diggle’s will stop by later, but they’re eating with his folks.”

Thea watched her nephew’s face redden by three shades when Felicity mentioned Zoe Ramirez. She pulled her lips in and tried to keep her mouth shut, but her eyes were dancing with mischief.

Felicity saw and laid a warning hand on her arm until William disappeared again, like a grumpy house cat.

“Don’t tease him. He’s got it pretty bad, and we don’t think she’s noticed. Or maybe she has and she’s not interested. Either way it’s been hard.” Felicity paused and rested one arm on her built-in belly shelf, sliding the other under to support it from below. 

“Not long now, mama,” Thea said softly, and Felicity made an attempt at a smile.

“It’ll be less crazy around here now that the Mayor’s been re-elected,” she sighed, as her husband caught her eye and winked. 

Hours later, post-food, and friends, and cold leftovers with more friends, the family of almost-four sprawled on the sofa to relax in front of the football game. 

“The baby needs a name,” William said softly, out of nowhere. Felicity was in a half-snooze, her feet propped in Oliver’s lap, but she raised her head and regarded him for a moment. 

“We have Robert Thomas, if it’s a boy. You know that.”

“Yeah, but I don’t think it’s going to be a boy,” he pressed, his eyes lowered. Oliver had been staring at the screen, but his son’s tone made him turn his attention away from the game. 

“What makes you say that, buddy?” He moved the hand that had been resting behind his own head to ruffle William’s hair. The boy shrugged.

“Just a feeling.”

“Well,” Felicity sighed, “we haven’t had much luck agreeing on a girl’s name. Do you have any suggestions?”

William shrugged again, which could mean he didn’t, or it could mean he did but didn’t want to say. The football game was the only sound in the room for several more minutes. 

“My mom’s middle name was Avery,” he said then, so quietly that Felicity had to repeat it.

“Avery?” She and Oliver exchanged a look, and then Oliver said it softly himself, under his breath. Trying it out. A slow smile spread over his face, and when his wife nodded he lifted her hand to his lips for a kiss. 

 

December 2019

It was past eleven, but Felicity was up once again to use the bathroom. Her heart rate picked up when she saw the spot of blood in her underwear, which she thought about reporting to a slumbering Oliver, but instead kept to herself until she’d scrolled through her phone contacts for the on-call doctor’s number. 

“Um, sorry to call so late, but I’m spotting, and I was told to call anytime that happened.”

She’d snuck into the nursery to make the call, and she sat back in the glider rocker with her feet up as she talked. 

“What’s your due date,” the OB asked gently.

“It was nine days ago.”

There was a smile in the doctor’s voice when she spoke again.

“Spotting means you’re in labor, Mrs Queen. Try to get some rest, and call me back when the contractions are two minutes apart.”

“Oh. Right. Of course. Sorry to bother,” Felicity spluttered, shocked and relieved and embarrassed all at once. She knew she should crawl back into bed to save her strength for the work ahead, but she found herself wandering toward the kitchen instead. 

She didn’t expect William to be up, but there he was, hunched over the kitchen counter eating a bowl of cereal.

“Hungry,” she asked with a smile.

“Always,” he replied. His voice had gotten so deep; deeper than Oliver’s regular voice, closer to his Green Arrow growl, actually. 

Felicity stopped next to him for a moment and ran a hand over his hair lightly, straightening a piece at the front while he looked at her. She smiled.

“Couldn’t sleep,” he asked around a mouthful of cereal.

“Nah. I’m in labor.”

“Oh...Oh!” His spoon clattered into the bowl, but she laughed softly and stilled him with a hand on his arm.

“It’s okay. It just started. I haven’t even had a contraction yet.” Although as she said it her back started to hurt a little. 

“Have you told Dad yet,” he asked, resuming his cereal cautiously, as if he was afraid she might spontaneously give birth in front of him.

“No. I’ll let him sleep until things get rolling.”

Felicity walked on past him, pacing a path into the kitchen and back to his spot at the counter. As the minutes passed it was obvious something was happening, and William, although finished with his snack, didn’t move from his spot as she continued her circuit.

“Boy, a lot has changed for us in the last year, hasn’t it,” she mused, hands pressing into the small of her back as she walked. “You’ve grown up and I’ve grown...out.”

William slouched over the countertop and watched her progress.

“Sometimes I don’t even recognize myself,” he said softly. The late hour and near darkness must’ve given him courage, because that was not a sentence she ever thought he would share with her. 

“Being a teenager is crazy stuff,” Felicity agreed. She had more to add, but the sudden pain of a contraction took her breath, and she had to lean straight-armed against the kitchen counter for several seconds until it passed. 

“Don’t forget to breathe,” he cautioned at one point a bit later, and she nodded as another wave began. 

“Hey,” she said eventually. “Could you time these for me?”

William pulled out his phone, hitting the stopwatch when she indicated. 

“Oh wow, three minutes,” he reported after the first interval. 

“Seriously?” Felicity’s voice was edged with a little bit of panic. “This is going faster than I thought. What time is it?”

“Almost 1 am,” he said, swiping a hand through his hair. “Want me to get Dad now?”

“Yes. Now would be good, I think.”

 

Hours later, William was Oliver’s first call.

“I’m going to send your aunt to pick you up, so make sure you’re ready.”

“Is Felicity okay,” William asked, and Oliver’s heart threatened to burst.

“Yeah, she’s great. Your baby sister looks just like her.”

“Boy, we got lucky there, didn’t we?”

Oliver laughed out loud; a rare and wonderful sound, indeed. 

“We sure did, buddy. We sure did.” His eyes filled with tears and he swallowed hard. “See you soon.”

 

Felicity looked up from the bundle of pinkness in her arms and almost gasped; William, although still gangly, filled a good portion of the doorframe, and absolutely towered over his Aunt Thea. We’ll have to measure him again when we get home, she thought wryly.

“Hi, Will. Would you like to hold her,” she asked, and smiled when he nodded nervously. 

Oliver got him situated on the freakishly uncomfortable couch across from the bed, then carefully collected his daughter from Felicity and handed her down to his son.

William held her gingerly, as if she might shatter, and stared at her tiny, scrunched up face. He glanced up once at his father, but it was more of a “go away, I’m fine” then a request for reassurance, so Oliver stepped away to watch.

There was another moment of quiet contemplation on his part before she finally yawned and opened her eyes, regarding him in the way Aunt Thea sometimes did when she was making up her mind about something. 

“Well hello there, Avery Dearden Queen,” William said softly, and across the room Felicity grabbed after Oliver’s hand and squeezed.


End file.
